Catcher&#39;s mitt or glove.



PATENTED JAN. 28, 1908. E. J.- m1. GOLDSMITH. OATGHERIS'MI-TT OR GLOVE.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 28.1904.

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UNITED STATEH PATENT OFFIOE.

EDGAR J. GOLDSMITH AND HUGO GOLDSMITH, OF CINCINNATI, OHIO, ASSIGNORS TO THE FIRM OF P. GOLDSMITHS SONS, OF CINCINNATI, OHIO.

GATCHERS MITT OR GLOVE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 28, 1908.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, EDGAR J. GOLD- SMITH and HUGO GOLDSMITH, citizens of the United States, and residents of the city of Cincinnati, in the county of Hamilton and State of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Catchers Mitts or Gloves, of which the following is a specifi cation.

One of the principal objects of our invention is to produce improved means for drawing and securing the thumb of a catchers mitt or glove close to the palm portion.

The several features of our invention and the various advantages resulting from their use conjointly or otherwise will be apparent from the following description and claims.

Wherever in the specification, the term mitt is used, it is to be understood as including a glove also.

In the accompanying drawings, in which similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts,-Figure 1 is a view in perspective of a catchers mitt or glove, illustrating our invention. The palm of the glove is toward the .beholder. Fig. 2 on a smaller scale is a similar view of the same mitt, but in this instance the outer point of the thumb is unloosed from the finger sack, and not secured in place. Fig. 3 represents a vertical section taken through the upper part of the mitt substantially parallel to the plane of the palm. Fig. 4. is a vertical section taken through the upper part of the mitt parallel to the plane of the palm and illustrating a modification of the location of the eyelet holes relatively to the inner band. Fig. 5 is a perspective view of a mitt, the palm side toward the spectator, and illustrating a modification of our invention.

We will now proceed to describe our in vention in detail.

A indicates the catchers mitt or glove.

B indicates the thumb and O the palm of the mitt. The palm side and the back side of the mitt may be made in any desired way. I/Ve are accustomed to secure the back and palm pieces of the mitt together by a band D, duly united, preferably by stitching, at one edge of the palm piece and at the other edge to the back piece. Even when the back and palm pieces are secured together at their edges, the band D is desirable to cover the joint or connection between said back and palm pieces. This band D is continued around the edge of the mitt down to where the thumb portion B begins and then is continued up and around the thumb piece, and is thence usually continued around the mitt, so that it is present at all places on the edge of the mitt. But whether it is thus continued or not, the only place where it becomes of importance relative to our invention is at those portions of the edges of the thumb portion and the palm portion which are near to one another. These parts we have indicated by the letters D and D When these parts are made and before the thumb portion is drawn to the palm portion, the thumb points away from the palm as indicated by dotted lines in Figs. 1 and 3, and by solid lines in Fig. 2.

It is our purpose to draw the thumb portion to the finger portion by means of a cord string, thin thong or strap, of any flexible material. The mode of holding the cord and of applying the cord and the results produced we conceive to be a feature of our invention.

Upon the band D along the parts D" and D we sew a reinforcing band. The band on the thumb portion we indicate by E, and the opposite band on the finger portion. we indicate by F. Each band is at each side and at the end sewed to the mitt. Preferably this reinforcing band can be sewed to the mitt by the same row of stitching by which the band D is secured to the mitt. This band may be in one piece, that is, the bands E, F, may be integral.

For the purpose of securing the thumb to the palm, as would. be the position of the thumb when the catcher is receiving the ball, we provide means as follows: Eyeleted holes G are formed in each of the bands D E, on the one side, and D F, on the other side, as shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 3. Adjacent holes in each band register with each other as shown, and one eyelet does foreach of these adjacent holes, thereby holding the two bands together and allowing the string or cord J to be readily passed through the holes and also preventing the string or cord from tearing the leather of either band.

The preferred mode of lacing the thumb close to the palm portion is quite fully illustrated in Figs. 1, 2, 3 and 4, to wit: wherein the lacing extends down to or near the point X.

Another mode of lacing is illustrated in Fig. 5. But this latter mode is very undesirable, for the following reason. The lacing should extend to the bottom X of the space between the thumb and the palm, or close thereto and be continued up thence to a point toward or near to the upper endilof of the thumb B and to a corresponding point on the edge of the palm piece O. If the lacing does not begin at or near the bottom X, but is begun higher up as shown in Fig. 5, then the parts Y and Z of the glove, namely:

the parts of the thumb and palm portion opposite one another and in. the vicinity of this bottom X, have too much latitude and play, and by the impact of theball on the mitt, will be worked back and forth, and will by friction and by being twisted, soon wear out, rip or tear. This wearing out will take place in advance of the portions above held in place by the lacing cord, and also earlier than the remainder of the glove. Thus, in the effort to save a small amount of lacing and a few eyelet holes, the mitts will be too soon injured. It may be added that should this thumb portion B be extended from the palm portion O and in no substantial way connected to the palm portion, the

impact of the thrown ball on the palm, is

liable to bend back the thumb and to injure the players hand.

When desired, the eyelets can be restricted to the reinforcing band E, F, as shown in Fig. 4.

Of course where the reinforcing band is omitted, the eyelets would be restricted to the primary band D D Our invention is advantageous over a means for drawing together the thumb and palm, which. consists of flat leathers respectively attached to the thumb and palm, and extending in a common plane toward each other, these leathers being provided with eyelet holes.

Among the several advantages which our invention possesses over this are strength and durability.

What we claim as new, and of our invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is:

1. In a catchers mitt, the combination with the palm and thumb formed by the substantially parallel front and back portions with interposed padding and a band D ex tending at substantially right angles to the front and back portions and connecting the edges thereof, of a reinforcing band parallel to and overlying said first named band and extending from a point at the topof the thumb down to the base of the thumb and up the adjoining part of the palm to a point opposite the top of the thumb, said band having its edges sewn to the band D, eyelets passing through both bands, and a lacing extending through the eyelets.

2. In a catchers mitt, the combination with the palm and thumb formed by the substantially parallel front and back portions with interposed padding and a band D ex tending at substantially right angles to the front and back portions and connecting the edges thereof, of a reinforcing band parallel to and overlying said first named band and extending from a point at the top of the thumb down to the base of the thumb and up the adjoining part of the palm to a point opposite the top of the thumb, said band having its edges sewn to the band D, eyelets passing through both bands, and a lacing extending through the eyelets, said lacing passing first through the first and second eyelets in the finger portion, then through the and then back and forth until the bottom eyelet is reached when the lacing is carried up through the thumb and passed out-of the first eyelet therein and the two endsthereof fastened together.

3. A catchers mitt comprising athumb and finger portion having eyelets in their opposing faces and a lacing starting at the first eyelet at the top of the finger portion and passing back and forth through the eyelets in both portions until the bottom eyelet is reached and then passing said lacing through the thumb portion and out of the top eyelet in the thumb portion and fastening the two ends together.

In witness whereof, we have hereunto set our hands in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

EDGAR J. GOLDSMITH. I-IUGO GOLDSMITH. Attest:

SAMUEL A. /VEST. K. SMITH. 

